by Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY Sports

by Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY Sports

They are sitting atop the National League West after their 6-5, 12-inning comeback victory Wednesday against the Atlanta Braves and, at 14-7, are tied for the second-best record in baseball.

It's got to be a fluke, right? How can a team that lost 98 games last year, with the worst pitching staff in baseball, suddenly be a bona fide contender?

"People outside this clubhouse may be surprised what's going on," Rockies right fielder Michael Cuddyer told USA TODAY Sports, "but it's not a surprise to any of us. This isn't some kind of aberration. We expect to be in there all year.

"You watched this team at the end of last year (winning nine or fewer games in three of the final four months), and it wasn't pretty. We were all hurt. Now, you're seeing what we can do when we're healthy."

It should be no revelation that the Rockies again are leading the National League in hitting, but who'd have imagined they'd also be entering Wednesday night leading the NL with 19 stolen bases, while ranking second in defense? When teams win games in the fashion they did Wednesday - scoring two runs in the ninth off All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel to tie the game and winning it on catcher Yorvit Torrealba's single while playing first base for the second time in his 12-year career - maybe there is something magical going on in between these April snow showers.